TNAG-1456-FCO40-1980-Future-of-Hong-Kong-annual-report-to-Parliament-on-Hong-Kong-1986 — Page 67

XI.

VIETESE REFUGEES

RESTRICTED

76.

During 1986 major

efforts were made to speed up the

refugees in camps

in Hong Kong.

resettlement of Vietnamese

relaxed

was

Following the decision by Her Majesty's Government in September 1985 to accept some 500 refugees from Hong Kong for family reunion in the United Kingdom under

criteria, a diplomatic campaign

mounted by Her Majesty's Government, supported by the Hong Kong Government, to persuade other countries to offer more resettlement places to Hong Kong. Many countries responded possitively, including Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden. For

its

the part

Hong Kong

Government

to decided

refugees on Chinese origin for local settlement.

77.

250 accept

more

In response to a request made by the United

the United Nations High

Commissioner for Refugess, the Hong Kong Government also agreed, in February 1986, to establish a transit centre in Hong Kong, to help

the resettlement facilitate

of refugees rescued at sea under the

International Rescue at Sea Resettlement Offers scheme.

78.

no

war in Vietnam However, eleven years after the end of the

there is still

to the durable solution in sight to the problem of the continuing exodus of refugees. During 1986 the number of Vietnamese refugees arriving in Hong Kong doubled compared with 1985.

This was

the

first time

increased

that the rate of

the since

in arrivals

the territory

implementation of the quote closed

had

centre

unquote policy in July 1982. Much of the benefit from an improved

by the Large was thus cancelled out

Further, arrivals new

in Hong Kong.

rate of resettlement in 1986

increase in the number of although some (3,700) refugees were resettled from Hong Kong in 1986 this level is unlikely to be maintained in 1987. Majesty's Government and the Hong Kong Government resettlement thus

brought a fall of

in the Vietnamese refugee population to the

end of the year. But

The efforts of Her

remained to be resettled.

RESTRICTED